Join me in this exploration of justice, liberty and virtue and their place in creating democratic, prosperous societies that secure the rights of all. This is a visit with the great jurists, philosophers, theologians and political scientists that have shaped contemporary civilization and the foundations of a peaceful, prosperous world.

Friday, May 1, 2015

In his Harvard
International Law Journal Commentary, “Saving an Ancient Community,”
Jonathan A. Pride argues for a three-prong strategy to save Iraq’s ancient
Christian community, now on the brink of extinction. His strategy consists of the following three-point plan:

1. The Iraqi government should act to deconstruct the “other” identity
of Christians by enacting constitutional changes providing for equal protection
and implementing the post-ethnic conflict reintegration methods that were
effective in the Balkans;

2. The Christian area in the Kurdistan Nineveh Plain should be given a
“safe zone” status, allowing villages to assemble local police forces to ensure
security; and

3. The international community must invest in and help rebuild Iraq’s
economy to help keep repatriation open as a viable option for Christians that
have fled Iraq.

In addition
to Mr. Pride’s suggestions for combatting the extinction of Christians in Iraq,
I argue in favor of one additional, under-utilized tool: Islamic law. Because
sectarian Islamic armed groups refuse to acknowledge the validity of
non-Islamic international humanitarian law, there is a critical need for peace-loving
Muslims to engage these armed groups from within the framework of Islamic law, the
very system they claim to implement. This can be achieved by Islamic scholars
and Imams, operating from within the framework of Islamic law, challenging
armed groups’ interpretations of the sacred texts they use to justify attacks
on Christians and other civilians, debating the apologists of jihād and
highlighting the discrepancies between these armed groups’ acts and the acts
strictly forbidden by Islamic law, including looting, the mutilation of corpses
and the murder of non-combatants in times of war.

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About Me

“Man's capacity for justice makes democracy possible, but man's inclination to injustice makes democracy necessary."
- Reinhold Niebuhr
John Balouziyeh is an attorney at the international law firm Dentons. He previously worked at the US State Department, the Inter-American Court of Human Rights, and at various other international institutions. His books on law, human rights, and international affairs reflect a core belief that limited government best serves its people when based on the principles of individual liberty and economic freedom.